NOE HP Molds are PITA!!!

[5shot]

Just so I can stop complaining I swapped out the HP pins for the Cup Point pins. Life will be good from here on out, regardless of outside temps.

BTW - it is so cold here, the bucket that I use for water dropping was in the garage all night, with the bullets in the bottom (it hadn't frozen over, which surprised me) when I reached in there, to grab my bullets, the whole bucket turned to slush instantaneously.

 

[Ian]

Short as those pins are Ian, I'm surprised you didn't burn your lips before you got it lit!

Geez, you think hemostats are just for clamping off squirting arteries? Haha! I got like four sets of real nice ones in the fly-tying kit. As for not burning lips, I think the dopers call it "drafting", make a whistle face and suck at it from a distance while wafting the Zippo flame at the other end. I used to roll and smoke a lot of Halfzware Shag when I was younger and couldn't always afford Camels.

 

[AKbushman51]

5shot- I've had the same issues with some HP molds. Tried finding any burrs on the pins, when found they were usually at the tip, or the base of the taper. Polished with 00/000 steel wool, then I would bake them @350 deg for and hour or so. Till they got nice black/blue color (like curing a cast iron pan). Then replace checking the pin holders for burrs, filing if necessary. Checking the height of the pins. Had to do this with two NOE Molds, one was a brass 379-275 for the 375 H&H, the other was an aluminum 360-245 for my Whelen. That solved my sticky pin issues. I do understand the frustration though. In my heated casting shed, casting with the exhaust fans on, is a pain, below 30 deg. I have to cast very fast, and run my melt 20-30 deg hotter than normal. Plus burning more fuel to heat the shed. Casting @ 12 deg ugh!
PS- How did the 30 cal mold workout ?
bushman

 

[Winelover]

I have exactly one of NOE's RG moulds and it is the last. The pins for the solids don't always seat fully and I get what I label transitions. Don't care for the pins sticking out the bottom, either. I prefer a flat mould base. IMO, they were named correctly. RG = Rube Goldberg. Now, I do like and recommend Al's solid nose moulds.

 

[Rally]

I’m just the opposite Winelover. My Marlins all shoot the dimple points better than either FP or Hp’s. I just made a base that uses the edge of the pin holders to align the mould for height and centers sprue plate. A second piece snaps in place for flat bottom moulds. Two 20 lb Lee’s s s and an Rg4 and it gets to raining bullets here, and the wife calling wondering what i’ve been up to. She worries when i’ve Been quiet for too long. Lol

 

[Winelover]

It's just a bad design, especially for ladle casting. Flood the mould with alloy and excess has the potential to run underneath and wreak havoc with the clips and pins.

 

[Rick]

When Al First came out with that HP pin design and posted pictures of it I just couldn't quite wrap my mind around the idea. Never have gotten one and have since kinda fallen out of favor with most HP's, probably won't get one.

 

[LenH]

The first one I bought was a PITA for sure and for certain. I took the pins out and polished them with some 1000 grit sand paper in a cordless drill.
Then I ran the thing rocket hot and the melt up to about 750° and finally got it to work after the 3rd or fourth casting session. I also put some of that
Frankford arsenal mold release on the pins only. There are tricks to get them to work and they usually work best in the summer time.

 

[358156 hp]

It's just a bad design, especially for ladle casting. Flood the mould with alloy and excess has the potential to run underneath and wreak havoc with the clips and pins.

I have this problem with MP Moulds. I've switched the pins from side to side, and eliminated most of the issues but getting any lead on those pins & clips frustrates the hell out of me.

 

[Ian]

If you put the sprue plate on with the hinge end toward you, tilt the mould down and away from you, and fill starting low/away and working back toward the hinge you can let all that extra "heat" run off the front of the sprue plate and it won't seize up the works.

Or you can bottom-pour like I do. I have enougj things to fiddle with and watch when using hp gang moulds without having to fight a ladle or with alloy slopped all over the mould.

 

[Brad]

I have this problem with MP Moulds. I've switched the pins from side to side, and eliminated most of the issues but getting any lead on those pins & clips frustrates the hell out of me.

Cast right handed the way God intended.

But yes, get lead on those slide pins and it becomes a mess.

 

[Rick]

But yes, get lead on those slide pins and it becomes a mess.

Then your mold isn't hot enough. I get lead all over the pins all the time and just a flick of the gloved thumb and it's gone. No mess, no fuss. A hot mold is your friend.

 

[358156 hp]

Or I can put it up for adoption, and use the proceeds elsewhere. The Crete gunshow is in a couple of weeks, and I'm getting tired of looking after so many moulds. They can be so... needy.

 

[Brad]

Is that the 503? Hmmm, I may be interested. That is a 2 cav?

 

[fiver]

mine like to hide in the deep dark corners until I get them a twin, then they crawl out and lay right on top of the pile in the middle of the drawer.

 

[5shot]

Luckily I don't have that many.

 

[5shot]

And now it is time for the flat point pins. The cup point pins are obviously quite short, and if the bullet happens to stick in the block opposite the pin attachment, when you pull the mold halves apart the short pin kind of tears out the nose of the bullet. It isn't a huge defect, but not desirable either. With the HP pins, they are deep enough that they would pull the bullet from the block instead of tearing out the nose. I guess I'll go flat point until it warms up a bit...or forever.

 

[Winelover]

I have a new MP 44-250 RF two cavity brass. Has three pin options......HP, solid and cup point. Have tried them all. No issues with any of the pins or the casting from them. Ordered the mould to drop at .434 for my Marlin carbine and it does. Mould was returned for undersized gas check shanks. Came back the same way. I'm done with MP gas checked bullets..............can't seem to get it right. Have to use the aluminum undersized gas checks. Never issues with shank sizes with NOE or Accurate.

 

[Ian]

You bottom-pour mostly, don't you John? I find the speed of casting with a bottom pour really helps keep mould temp up without having to drench the mould in excess metal. I too had issues with gas check shank sizes from MP, difference is you could easily polish yours out large whereas I had he opposite problem.

 

[mattw]

I agree, the pins make it a PITA. I have buffed the pins to make them as slick as possible, I preheat moulds on a hot plate and to finish getting them up to temp I use a butane pencil torch to warm the pins for the first few pours. I run 94/3/3 and keep my pot around 720F and cast fast. I do get enough heat in them eventually that I can add a second mould into the casting rotation, but it takes work.

When they work, they make great bullets. I have them in .360 and .401.